


Trust me, I've got you

by weeo



Category: Peaky Blinders (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, I'm not sure maybe it's, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-03
Updated: 2019-09-03
Packaged: 2020-10-06 10:33:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20505524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/weeo/pseuds/weeo
Summary: Tommy and Alfie are on the edge of a lake to bathe, but for some unknown reasons, Tommy doesn't want to join Alfie in the water today.





	Trust me, I've got you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [When_Tommy_Met_Alfie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/When_Tommy_Met_Alfie/gifts).

> This is an attempt at gathering my things at the same place. I wrote this piece a couple of months ago for WTMA's 1000-follower celebration on Tumblr. They made stunning drawings for this story, I'll link them in the notes at the end to avoid spoilers. I hope you'll like it!

Today, the night is restful. Alfie is paddling in the water, occasionally diving into the shallows of the Black Lake, but mostly calmly floating, ears underwater, listening to the peaceful silence. The lake is tiny, but instantly deep when you set a foot inside. There are dark trees all around it, lengthened by thin branches.

After Alfie has resurfaced from one of his multiple dives, he shouts joyfully:

“Come on Tommy. Come with me. Don’t stay all alone on the shore!”

Tommy is smoking, seated on the small pier, an arm around one of his leg. He’s only wearing a partly unbuttoned shirt and his underwear. His other foot dangles in fresh water and wiggles slightly. He’s looking away, toward the starry sky. When Alfie breaks him out of his reverie, he turns his head, but keeps a wistful expression, his mouth still half-opened. He firstly raises an eyebrow. Within a few seconds, he shatters the silence, which was beautified by the lapping on the shore, with his usual cold voice : “You’re alone too.”

Alfie smiles faintly and starts floating on his back. “You’re dull, mate. It’s just so refreshing to swim. Just come enjoy the delightful pleasures life on Earth offers us, before the devil remembers where we fucking belong!”

“No. I’m fine here.”, Tommy protests, “I don’t wanna be soaked.” He takes a long drag on his cigarette.

“Aw, our little precious boy don’t wanna catch a cold, innit.”, Alfie mocks, “Then, just come a few minutes and get out quickly if you’re freezing. I won’t judge ya for your softness, Tommy.”

Tommy sighs, while rolling his eyes. “Alfie”, he drawls, “I drank too much, I would drown.”

Unconvinced, Alfie swims silently to get closer to Tommy. When he reaches the shore, he leans on the bank. Tommy hasn’t taken his eyes off him all the way. Alfie waves his hand in the air. “Come here on the grass. I wanna show you something.”.

Sceptical, Tommy lifts his eyebrows: “To throw me into the water, I’m not fucking stupid.”.

“I won’t. I swear.” Alfie promised, with a sincere, but concerned look at his lover. Tommy throws his cigarette and slowly stands up. He looks quite irritated. He walks barefoot on the grass, without looking to his direction and sits cross-legged next to Alfie on the bank.

“I just wanna make you listen to something,”, Alfie points vigorously at Tommy’s forehead, “that will soothe your tiny head from all that booze you drank, mate. Just take off that pretty shirt of yours.”.

Tommy furrows his eyebrows and objects: “Fucking hell… Are you being serious right now?”

Alfie gets closer to Tommy and strokes his thigh, as an act of reassurance.

“Yeah, just do it, I promised I won’t throw you into the water. But I don’t get why you’re so upset. You’re looking like a little vampiric cat who’s afraid of being touched by holy water. Don’t be that wary, I won’t force you into anything, love”

Tommy’s face pauses for some seconds and softens slowly. He then hesitantly starts by undoing the first button of his shirt. He looks down toward Alfie, who encourages him with a nod, and unbuttons it completely, before taking it off.

“You’ll have to lay down.” Still partially immersed in the water, Alfie guides Tommy with his hands. “With your head next to me. Yeah, just like that”, Alfie whispers softly. Tommy is laid down on his back, head on the bank, next to the water and Alfie.

“I know a mad jewish doctor, Tommy, who can heal the damages in your little head.”. Alfie brushes his knuckles on his lover’s temples and subsequently makes his fingers travel on the sharp cheekbones and jawline. Tommy closes his eyes and melts into Alfie’s touches. “Lucky you are today”, says Alfie, “he’s just next to ya.”. Tommy smiles faintly, lifting the corner of his mouth. Alfie gently draws little circles, with his thumb, on Tommy’s cheek.

“It’s way more effective if your body is totally underwater, but since I’m a real magician of the modern medicine…”.

Tommy’s voice is slightly breaking, when he cuts Alfie in the middle of his sentence, to murmur : “I would drown, I said.”. Still leaned on his elbow against the bank and brows confusedly furrow, Alfie doesn’t add anything on this seemingly sensitive case, that he purposely closes to keep up with his speech.

“Imagine Tommy, someone who always hear sounds, annoying, awful sounds, all the fucking time in his ears, and suddenly, he can hear the silence, yeah, a total absence of noises.”. Alfie puts an hand under Tommy’s head and drag him closer. “A jewish friend of mine told me, his head has been harmed in France, just like yours, Tommy. He’s now swimming at least 2 hours every day, because the tiredness helps him a bit to sleep, right, but mostly, for drowning his head underwater.”, he explains carefully. Tommy’s head is now placed just over the water, supported by Alfie’s hand. “Would you like to try too ?”, Alfie asks, to which Tommy answers with a simple “Fine”.

“So, welcome to the great, deep silence, mate.”, he announces. He then immerses half of Tommy’s head, slowly, to avoid frightening him. Only his face is over the water to allow him to breath.

Tommy doesn’t move for several seconds. His tensed features soften really slowly, to the point, that it’s nearly imperceptible. Alfie gazes at him, concern etched in his face. The usually reassuring lapping of the water seems suddenly to taunt him and his silly ideas.

“I wish I could bring back that calm home,” Tommy mutters with his husky voice, while smiling fondly. His words sound like a deep breath of fresh air to Alfie. Tommy doesn’t remove his head from the water and stay there for a moment, his eyes closed, without talking at all.

Alfie takes the opportunity of a deaf Tommy to voice what he guessed since some time : “You thought you fooled me, you silly boy. Nah, nah, nah. I know you’re too proud to just ask for help. How am I supposed to be your pillar, when you hide the rocks to build it, mate ? You can’t swim don’t ya ?”

Feeling his lover moving slightly, Tommy opens his eyes again on Alfie’s last sentence. He instantly lifts his head out of the water : “What were you saying? I couldn’t hear anything.”

“You can’t swim, can ya ?” questions Alfie directly.

Tommy’s pounding heart, which is threatening to explode in tiny pieces, feels suddenly trapped in his chest. His mouth only partially opens, but there is not a sound that can leave it. Sweat begins to appear on his whole body and he’s unable to look Alfie in the eye.

Alfie brings Tommy’s head to his shoulder, to embrace him. He strokes his lover’s hair, as an attempt to comfort him and whispers in his ear : “Eh, Tommy, nothing to worry about, I’ll teach ya and you won’t even be able remember, that you couldn’t at some point”.

Alfie can feel Tommy’s steady breath against his chest. “You usually like to bathe in the little river next to the house. You don’t join me, cause you really don’t want to or cause you can’t ?” Tommy stays silent, ignoring Alfie’s question, although he’s still clinging to him.

“Got it. Do you trust me ?”

Tommy briefly nods against Alfie’s shoulder.

“Eh, look at me.”

Tommy loosens his embrace and meet Alfie’s eyes with difficulties.

“I’ve got you, Tommy. You can follow me.”, he says with a little smile.

Alfie starts to slowly move away of the shore, holding one of Tommy’s hand.

“Trust me. I’ve got you.”

On an impulse, Tommy throws himself unexpectedly into the lake, gripping Alfie’s hand. Alfie looks at Tommy, when they are underwater, admiring his cute way to sink horizontally, eyes tightly closed. He catches the second hand of his lover, then grasps both of his forearms to bring him closer and leaves a loving kiss on his lips.

**Author's Note:**

> You can click [here](https://whentommymetalfie.tumblr.com/post/185859540932/trust-me-ive-got-you-an-summer-time) to see WTMA's beautiful drawings! I can't thank them enough for this <3
> 
> I'd be happy to hear your thoughts about this story! Leave me a comment if you feel like it.  
English isn't my first language, and this piece hadn't been beta read, so please be indulgent with me! If you see typos, let me know!


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